Kathmandu, Aug. 27: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, alias Prachanda, clarified today that his first political visit will be to New Delhi and that it will take place “very soon”.

Talking to reporters after his arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport here from Beijing, Prachanda said his trip to China was not of a political nature. “It was merely to attend the closing ceremony of the Bejing Olympics,” he said.

Responding to questions, Prachanda tried hard to dispel the notion that he had violated a tradition followed by all Prime Ministers of Nepal — they had visited New Delhi first before any other country. “Please do not attach any political significance to my China visit,” he said, adding that since the visit was an informal one he did not sign any agreements with the Chinese government.

The Prime Minister described the Beijing visit as positive and fruitful and said that China had expressed its deep interest over Nepal’s peace process.

Asked about reports saying that New Delhi was unhappy over his China visit, Prachanda said it should not be viewed in a negative light as it was not a political one. “The visit was basically meant to represent the country in the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games. My first political and formal visit will be to India,” he said.

Prachanda had led an 11-member delegation to China on August 23. It included his wife Sita, communication minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara and foreign secretary Gyan Chandra Acharya.

In Beijing, he met Chinese President Hu Jintao, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and other leaders of the Chinese Communist Party.